Page 5. Women and riding

New Zealand women appear to have had a more progressive
experience with horses than women in Britain. They had more
freedom and independence when it came to riding horses, and
often learned to ride as children.

Riding side saddle

At first women rode, and in some cases raced, their horses
with side saddles. These required sitting with both legs on
the same side of the horse, with one leg secured around a
padded peg. Side saddles were restrictive – women generally
needed assistance mounting and dismounting, and they wore
flowing, cumbersome clothing.

Riding astride

Around 1900 women began to ride cross saddle, at first
wearing divided skirts, and later breeches under a
knee-length jacket. By 1910 most women were riding
astride.

An English newspaper reported on the experiences of a Miss
Shaw riding horses on her visit to New Zealand: ‘[T]he great
majority ride cross-saddle, and personally, out there I am
convinced it is best, as it makes one more independent, and
one has a chance of getting on again if one falls off … New
Zealand … must be the jolliest country in the world to ride
in.’1

Māori women

Māori women also took up riding and participated in races,
where they were the first women in the country to ride
astride. In a ‘wahines race’ held in Waikato during the
1890s, the women rode cross saddle, tying their gowns to
their ankles.